Coulterville

The Jeffery Hotel

The Jeffery Hotel is undoubtedly the most impressive structure in Coulterville today. You can’t miss it. Built in 1851 as a saloon and fandango hall, the building originally had two stories with adobe walls some thirty inches thick. Known then as the Mexican Hotel, it was purchased by George Jeffery in 1852. The Jeffery family owned and operated the hotel for many years, repairing it after each of the disastrous fires which swept through Coulterville. With each rebuilding the hotel grew bigger and better, finally becoming the striking three-story hotel standing today. Being located on the road to Yosemite, the Jeffery Hotel has had its share of distinguished visitors; Theodore Roosevelt dropped by in 1902. Although Jeffery owned and operated the hotel from 1852, he did not receive title to the property until 1878, when a county judge issued property deeds and he was able to officially buy the land on which it stood. George Jeffery is buried in the Public Cemetery, look for the tombstone spelled incorrectly, George “Jeffrey.”